Lab Safety

A.  General Safety Rules

1.  Listen to or read instructions carefully before attempting to do anything.
2.  Wear safety goggles to protect your eyes from chemicals, heated materials, or things that might be able to shatter.
3.  Notify your teacher if any spills or accidents occur.
4.  After handling chemicals, always wash your hands with soap and water.
5.  During lab work, keep your hands away from your face.
6.  Tie back long hair.
7.  Roll up loose sleeves.
8.  Know the locations of the fire extinguisher, fire blanket, eyewash station, and first aid kit.
9.  Keep your work area uncluttered. Take to the lab station only what is necessary.
10.  It is suggested that you wear glasses rather than contact lenses.
11.  Never put anything into your mouth during a lab experiment.
12.  Clean up your lab area at the conclusion of the laboratory period.
13.  Never “horse around” or play practical jokes in the laboratory.

1.  Chipped or cracked glassware should not be used. It should be shown to the teacher.
2.  Broken glassware should not be disposed of in a classroom trashcan. There is a special glass disposal container for it.
3.  When pouring liquids into glassware, make sure the container you are pouring into is resting on a table at least a handsbreadth from the edge.
4.  Pour down a glass stirring rod to prevent liquids from splattering.
5.  If a piece of glassware gets broken, do not try to clean it up by yourself. Notify the teacher.
6.  When inserting glass tubing into a rubber stopper, apply a lubricant to the glass and use a turning motion.
7.  To cut glass tubing, first lay the tube on the lab table and make a scratch in it with a file.  Then pick up the tube with the scratch facing away from you, put your thumbs together on the opposite side as the scratch, and pull the tube with both hands.
8.  If you cut glass tubing, always fire polish the broken ends to remove sharp edges.
9.  Do not place hot glassware in water.  The rapid cooling may cause it to break.

1.  Wear protective goggles and a lab apron whenever heating or pouring hazardous chemicals.
2.  Never mix chemicals together unless you are told to do so (and then only in the manner specified).
3.  Never taste any chemicals (you should never taste anything in the lab).
4.  If you need to smell the odor of a chemical, waft the fumes toward your nose with one hand. Do not put your nose over the container and inhale the fumes.
5.  Never pour water into a concentrated acid. Acid should be poured slowly into water.
6.  Follow the instructions of your teacher when disposing of all chemicals.
7.  Wash your hands after handling hazardous chemicals.

1.  Lay electrical cords where no one can trip on them or get caught in them.
2.  Be sure your hands and your lab area are dry before using electrical equipment.
3.  Never poke anything into electrical outlets.
4.  Unplug cords by pulling the plug and not the cord.
5.  Unplug all electrical equipment at the end of the lab period.

1.  Let burners and hotplates cool down before touching them. Test to see if they are cool enough by bringing the back of your hand close to them.
2.  Use tongs and/or protective gloves to handle hot objects.
3.  Never reach across an open flame or burner.
4.  The only type of glassware that may safely be heated is either Kimax or Pyrex.
5.  Always point the top ends of test tubes that are being heated away from you and others.
6.  When heating a test tube, tilt it away from people and move it around slowly over the flame to distribute the heat evenly.
7.  Only glassware that is thoroughly dry should be heated.
8.  Heat glassware by placing it on a wire gauze platform on a ringstand.  Do not hold it in your hand.
9.  When lighting a burner, wait until the match is struck or the striker is in place before you turn on the gas.
10.  The amount of air can be adjusted by the air supply valve below the tube of the burner.  This regulates the temperature and color of the flame.
11.  Never leave a burner or hotplate unattended.